


You Shot Off Your Mouth And Look Where It Got You

by rosesinheavylight



Category: Space ☆ Dandy
Genre: Comfort/Angst, Fights, M/M, Other, Platonic Male/Male Relationships, Song Lyrics, also there's physical fighting but i wouldn't say its enough to get a proper warning, im not sure if this counts as angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-06
Updated: 2016-05-06
Packaged: 2018-06-06 16:30:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,929
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6761563
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rosesinheavylight/pseuds/rosesinheavylight
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>
  <i> As life gets longer, awful feels softer.</i>
  <br/>
  <i> Well, it feels pretty soft to me.</i>
  <br/>
  <i> And if it takes shit to make bliss</i>
  <br/>
  <i> then I feel pretty blissfully.</i>
</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I've probably written this in too cheesy a fashion (especially with the ending), but I figure I should still post it for my own documentation and to get the criticism I probably need to hear.  
> Forgive me for being petty. I hope it's decent :)
> 
> The title and summary are lyrics from _The View_ by Modest Mouse. It's such a good song.

Meow felt like he was forgetting something today, and it wasn't biting him on the back of the neck necessarily.

In the Aloha Oe's cockpit, the usual lethargic silence rang on. The occasional hiss of scissors dragging across a lewd magazine could be heard from the driver's seat where Dandy was, and QT's low static noise that hinted he was recharging would resonate loud enough to be noticed every ten minutes or so. The realization hit the Betelgeusian while he scrolled through some of his photo albums, and came across some old shots from his home planet. He then sat forward, and it sorta felt like he had a hairball in his throat -- which wasn't usually a problem.

It was now, though, because that was no hairball. He just couldn't get himself to breathe for a moment.

_It was Father's Day on Betelgeuse._

He took a few moments to reel, but swallowed his dread. "Hey, uh...QT?" Meow stammered, sitting back in his seat. The robot hummed, "Yes, Meow?"

"Could we, uh...make a pit stop somewhere before the day is over?"

The scissors stopped tearing up the magazine's pages as lazy quiet became more forced in the room. Meow's paws shook, almost fumbling his phone as the robot turned in their seat and asked, "Where do you need to go?"

"...Home?" He choked out. The hairs on the back of his neck rose as a snort came from the driver's seat. Just as he feared, a strident jeer sounded from Dandy, "We thought you hated that place. You said there was nothin' there for you."

Meow tried to be cool as he lied with narrowed eyes and a smirk, "Oh, I just forgot some stuff the last time we visited. It'll be quick, I promise."

QT prodded, "What do you need?" and the cat averted the question by asking, "How long would it take to get there? It's urgent, so could we make it before the day's over?"

Though he knew he belonged to the adventures on the Aloha Oe, Meow had to make it up to his Father by going to see him just for this day. He would for Mother's Day, too, which was in the next few planetary months that he knew of. A sense of urgency fell upon Father's Day, something different from when he would greet his mother on her designated holiday with flowers or something that meant more just because it was from her son. Meow felt his Mother had more room for his mistakes.

QT finally answered, "Hmm, we could make it in good time before the Betelgeusian timezone switches to the next day. I hate to repeat myself, but what is it that you needed?"

Suddenly, Dandy sat forward in his seat and asked, "Since when did we agree we were taking this trip?" Meow immediately answered, "Because we're able to! Don't stress about it, dude. Is it really that big a deal?"

"It wouldn't be if you just told us why we need to go, cat."

"Look, I can't go into it right now, man. We just need to _go."_

"We have enough time, just tell us." Dandy's voice grew agitated, and Meow tensed up as he insisted, "I **can't."**

QT interrupted, "It's going to take us around a few hours. Will that work out for you?"

 _"Perfect."_ Dandy spat.  
_"Great."_ Meow muttered.

Everyone grew quiet again as QT began to input the coordinates, but then the sound of metal-toed shoes scraping the floor jabbed pins into Meow's back as Dandy huffed, "If we're gonna waste the fuel and time, then I'm gonna figure out what's got your toga in a knot about goin' back to that place."

"If you're gonna insult me, it's called a _sarong_. Get it right." Meow hissed back in an equally salty tone.

The cockpit had grown too irritating to be in, so Meow left when it seemed there were no more aggravating remarks from his crew mate. He roamed to one of the living spaces on the Oe with the circular couch that was made into the floor, and immediately felt relief in being alone. He began considering what he had with him that he could give to his father. He could do what he always did as a kid, and make his own card. The art would definitely be better. Maybe, he had a leftover Octopus flavored popsicle, the ones he always liked to snag when he saw them at a store. Would his dad even like them, though?

Meow furrowed his brow and thought, _I'd know if I spent more time with him._

 

"Oh." QT beeped, their processor digging around the internet for some time now. They informed, "It's a holiday on Betelgeuse. That's why Meow wants to go home, I think."

Dandy slid down in his chair and commented, "Wow, he could've just told us that. What made him so touchy?"

QT added, "It's Father's Day, actually. He may take it more personally than other things."

"No kidding." The man was quiet, but then stared hard at his knees and grumbled, "I'm beginning to wonder if it's really worth a four hour trip. We got other places to be, eh?"

QT then defended, "Well, he has strong family values and we should be able to accommodate that. Like humans, Betelgeusians are a family-orientated species, just like humans, Dandy. Don't you know what that's like?"

Dandy sat forward and quickly said, "Sure I do. Where'd that pansy run off to, anyways?"

"I'd leave him alone, Dandy. We can infer that leaving the room means that he wants to be alone."

The robot found that they were spouting dry inquiries to themselves: both of their living friends were now down the hall.  
They let out a tuned sigh and knew they could only ignore the scene that would go up in flames before their very optics.


	2. Chapter 2

_Welp, the silence was nice while it lasted._

Meow craned his neck and glared down at his phone as Dandy came in teasing. "So, you wanna go see Pops? You could've just said so."

"Y- WAIT, HOW DID YOU KNOW THAT!?" The alien's heart seized as he suddenly hissed at him, big eyes flashing ahead again to gaze in pure fear at the spaceman.

Dandy smirked in assurance as he mumbled, "Research, baby. So, what makes y'think this visit's such a big thing, anyways?" Meow stammered defiantly, _"Uhh...!?_ It's Father's Day? That's sort of an important thing for guys like us. You've done it before, too, h-"

"You know, that sour attitude's rubbing me the wrong way." Meow felt the cut-off of his remark stab at his ego as Dandy frowned and brushed him off. He tried to repeat himself, "Well, it's not the sweetest subject, alright? Speaking of, what makes you so sure you know about i-"

"I have senses, Meow. Senses that tell me what's important in said men's lives and not." Dandy sidetracked the conversation once more.

Meow raised his voice as he began again, "So that means you know all about whether I can see my family or not now, because of your stupid man senses!? Not once have I heard about your-"

**"Hey."** Dandy interrupted again, "If you're gonna shout, we don't have to go anywhere, buddy."

"Why, just so you can have more time to avoid my questions, you _pompous ass?"_ Meow suddenly snarled, and Dandy's jaw tightened as the Betelgeusian got up in his face, and with his sharp yellow eyes stabbing into the citrine windows of his taller opposer he dared to ask, "Since when have you been the expert? Not once have I heard you talk about anything regarding your Dad, or any family for that matter!"

"Meow, you got three seconds to drop it." Dandy coughed loudly, but the shorter peer was furious with an intent to get a rise out of him now -- just like the human had been about his personal life.

He didn't care about an answer, honestly; he asked in prodding growls as the man clenched his teeth, "Where's your family, anyways, Mr. Space Dandy? Is Dandy your family's surname? When's the last time you even talked to the-"

Meow was cut off again, this time by an uppercut that came so fast the sensation from the sound of a fist into his jaw was delayed. The alien felt his entire world flip up to stare at the ceiling, and then a metal-heeled boot knocking him in the back and sending him to the ground and his eyes to stare at the floor.

"WHAT PART OF DROP IT DID YOU NOT GET!?" The spaceman hollered, but the cat was up while he was reeling and throwing himself onto Dandy before he heard what was said.  
"I DON'T HAVE TO TELL YOU _SHIT."_ Meow spat in his face, knocking him on his back and bearing his spearlike teeth.

Something faltered in Dandy's expression, but froze up after seeing Meow glare, melting into an undeniable dedication to winning this brawl.

Meow took off down the hall suddenly, kicking off Dandy for a head start and screaming, "NOW LEAVE ME ALONE, YOU PRICK!" Meow had been with the Oe for a sizable amount of time, but he still didn't understand that no one out-did Space Dandy and got the last word about it.

When the familiar _clnk-clnk-clnk-clnk_ of the boots came after him, the alien picked up the speed and ran into a spare supply closet out of impulse. Dandy turned the corner and went after him, swearing up a storm as he barreled into a football tackle onto him.

The alien got to his feet, but his rabid partner was yanking on one of the sets of ears on his head that stuck out from his hat. He leaned with the weight from it, eyes watering, and began walking backwards -- right into the control panel by the door.

There was a sharp pop of electricity as their backs collided into it, sending both the boys screaming and soaring back across the room where they tackled each other. The lights in the room went out, and the door sealed shut with a loud whirring noise and a hiss.

Both Meow and Dandy looked back at it in frozen terror, reeling as they leaned against the walls and heads throbbing.

_"No..."_ Dandy's lungs deflated as he struggled to his feet, but Meow took the words out of him mouth, screaming it over and over as he ran up to the door. "NO NO NO NO! QT, GET US OUT! I CAN'T BE IN HERE WITH HIM!!"

Dandy slid down the wall finally, and crossed his arms over his knees as Meow shook at his translator violently. "WHY THE HELL ISN'T THIS WORKING!?" He desperately cried out. The spaceman grumbled, "Service doesn't go through these walls, dumbass. It's always been like that."

"JUST SHUT UP WITH THE NAMES ALREADY! YOU SAY DUMBASS ONE MORE TIME AND I'LL...I'LL..." The cat's defiant posture crumbled in itself suddenly. Dandy rose his eyebrows at him as he fell to the floor and hid his face in his arms.

This was going to be a tough... _however long it would be_ until QT found them.


	3. Chapter 3

Something about the way Meow was looking at him made Dandy's skin crawl, like there was major problem solving going on within his friend's head. He met the look with a dirty expression, a temporary scopophobia causing his own feelings to ache. He pretended to brush it off, setting his chin on his arms and looking away. Maybe if the damn cat thought it didn't bother him, he'd knock it off...

But Meow stared. He got rather collected after his tantrum, and straightened up with square shoulders and his eyes wide and a closed mouth holding back so many things. Dandy shivered at it, and finally lashed out, _"What!?"_

Meow asked with a condescending prod, "What do you even know about having a family, Dandy?"

Dandy began hotly, "I told you once, and I'll be nice enough to tell you again, dirtbag: I know enough."

His blank face began to crease in repressed irritation as he spit in a vile voice, "Prove it. Tell me about your family." Pure terror from the very utter of that question stomped the wind out of Dandy, and it made him tighten his grip on his knees as he stayed quiet. His throat locked up, like he was choking; but he refused to show it, and just glared him down.

Meow grew hostile in his posture, craning his neck and large eyes welling up as he fumed, "Can you not be so skimpy on your details for once? You don't know what it's like, do you?" The alien grew thick in his reason as he blew up, and threw random thoughts out, closing his eyes and weeping at the top of his lungs, "DON'T EVEN TRY TO TELL ME QT'S YOUR FAMILY! I WAS NEVER YOUR FUCKING FAMILY, EITHER! YOU AND I KNOW THAT! JUST TELL ME YOU HAD A DAD AT SOME POINT, AND EVEN WHAT THAT WAS LIKE, AND I'LL STOP ASKING AND WE DON'T HAVE TO GO **ANYWHERE!"**

When Meow opened his eyes in expectation to find himself getting punched again, Dandy was instead propelling himself at the door. The cat flung himself away from it, tears spilling from his eyes as the guy began driving his shoulder into it over and over.

The Betelgeusian then recalled what he just let come out of his mouth, and bit his lip as he watched Dandy clumsily fall to the ground, shaking like he couldn't recall seeing before in all the tough, battle-filled trips they had gone on and after his ass was kicked by the meanest, coldest aliens they've faced.

But the moment wasn't for long before the gun came out.

Meow pleaded, "No, don't-!" but bright lights started to flash and hit the door rapidly in loud bangs. Meow ducked, tail under him, as more tears came out of his eyes. He had to catch his breath, and he did it while the gun drowned out his hiccups. He knew all of that should of just stayed down in himself, where it wouldn't of hurt anything, or anyone for that matter.

But, he opened his eyes with vision completely blurred out, he also figured it wouldn't of happened if the other guy just shut up for one minute. He felt his throat seethe from all his yelling, and caught the clash of the gun finally falling to the ground. The smell of smoke filled the room, stinging the Betelgeusian's nostrils and making his eyes water more on top of everything else.

A small few sparks stood against the damaged door, still sealed despite facing all the wrath from Dandy. In their dim glow, Meow looked up and saw something that made things shift in his thought train, his suspicion falling away.

The man before him had a jaw that still clenched up, but it wasn't keeping his bottom lip from shaking. His hand immediately grabbed the arm that was slammed into the door, and he let his head fall in a momentary pause.

Meow never considered _why_ the subject made him upset, but it was drifting away as a reason that needed answers. Meow never wanted any answers to begin with. Whatever lied under this, it was getting the 'dick move' card on both of their parts.

"...Forget about this, forget it. Alright?" Dandy breathed, and he could hear the ache in his voice as he turned away from him and assured, "You should know it by now, Meow. I don't really care where we go. You were gonna go and see your folks -- no matter what I said."  
The cat's heart lurched, and he let his heart take over as he scrambled up in a total leap of faith and weakness, grabbing onto his crew mate and sobbing like he was half his actual age.

Through the desperate pleas of apology and thank you, and the tearstains growing darker and darker on the burgundy shirt, Meow felt the hairball sitting in his chest finally tumble out in his sickly coughs and ugly snorting. He felt kind of bad that he was wrecking someone's clothes for the sake of his own emotions. He also didn't expect to ever get this close to a human he was convinced that he loathed.

Meow never imagined that a hand that always flicked his whiskers just to annoy him, or whacked him when he said something dumb, could ever gently set itself on the top of his head, without a sign of tenseness or discipline, and have it patiently wait there in a shaking silence until Meow impulsively got anything else out.

Only then would his taller counterpart let himself tell him to get the hell off already.

 

"Don't know where you get the thought that we aren't family." Dandy's nose was clogged up a bit as Meow turned towards him, and in the shine of space's endless stars, he got an old cheeky gleam in his glassy eyes and added, "I've learned somethin' over the time we've worked together, cat: we sure fight as much as any family would."

The cat hummed, "Yeah...I guess." He then looked at the door, and desiring to change the subject again he asked, _"Pfft._ How mad will QT be when he sees what you did to the door?"

Dandy smiled a bit, but hid it under his hand and replied, "Pre-tty damn mad."


End file.
